


Minus World - Chapter 1

by Soufon



Series: Minus World [2]
Category: Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:08:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28043688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soufon/pseuds/Soufon
Series: Minus World [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2030395
Kudos: 1





	Minus World - Chapter 1

So much for the shortcut.  
Vivian had been going down that pipe for what felt like hours, and only now was there a faint light at the end of the long, cold tunnel. Approaching the rim, she grasped on to it's sides, and peeked out to take a quick look at the area. It was dim. She was still in some sort of cave, though the rocky walls of the chamber bore no resemblance to the barren brick of the cavern prior. What light there was shone through a massive gap in the ceiling, the cavern more akin to a dug-out hole. True to that mindset, a few floating blocks embezzled with "?" markers hung by the staircase, hugging it as well as the outer walls. They were a sign of civilization, though Vivian never really saw anyone put them up, or do maintenance on them. Maybe they were just a thing of nature. Whatever the case, they meant people were nearby, so she decided that this was where she was meant to be. She had to get moving; it was already night!

Vivian stepped out from the pipe, and no sooner it broke apart into pieces. Curiously, there wasn't a hole left from this; the "shortcut" must've been meant as a one-way affair. The thought didn't bother her much. If the people around here had already dug out holes and built staircases, they probably had better means of travel than the ragtag crew back at shore.

Atop the staircase was a small patch of sand above a quiet sea. Wooden bridges stretched out to other nearby isles. The land did seem rather arid back over by the ship, Vivian thought. This was likely some sort of artificial lake. She'd watched a documentary about such a thing back home. It always struck her as odd that people never tried reviving hot areas with magic rather than strenuous construction work. Her sisters always said that it was to keep those poor brick-laying folks having a job, putting mages like them out of business for practicing "dark arts". They were always cynical about these kinda things. Vivian hoped they could learn to see the good in life someday.

A lone sign stood near a large bush. Vivian leaned over it, only for the "sign" to speak to her instead.

"Caution! Bridges may collapse!"

Vivian jumped back with a gasp. The talking post recognized this, and relaxed.

"Whoa there! Calm down now, I'm just an old board by these shores. The name's Bill Board, by the by."

The sign wasn't some sort of trap, thank goodness. Vivian tugged at her shirt, eventually managing a response.

"Hi. Are you... with the other crew?"

The sign seemed to sneer somehow.

"No, I don't reckon. 'Course, me and my family came out here on behalf of the administration and all that, but no, we don't really jive with those folks up north."

She thought over his words. He must mean a group of raiders, she thought. She had heard all about them on the way here; all sorts of unsavory folk left over from the old kingdom's vanishing. Vivian hoped she wouldn't come face to face with any of them, lest they snatch that parcel. What would she ever do then?

Vivian bid the sign farewell and set out once more across the shore.

Across a bridge, another sign stood by a raised shelf of sandstone. Vivian didn't have to the time to talk. She hopped right over it, leaping up to grab the ledge. She could only really scrape off sand from its edge. The sign watched her struggle with a curious, yet uninterested gaze.

"You almost got it that time."

Vivian grimaced at the sign's snide remark, but tried to not let it see that. Truthfully she wasn't getting anywhere like this anyways. Might as well relent and see what it had to say.

"Well, do you have any suggestions? I really need to get going, and I'd rather not get these clothes wet."

The sign furrowed it's brow, or at least, that's what it looked like it was doing. It was hard to tell with these things (things? they could talk, so they had to be people...)

"Hm... I do done think I've forgotten. Aw well. You could try goin' through that there wall, ghostly little thing. You are a ghost, right? Seen a purple Boo or two in my time, never one with legs!"

The board cackled to itself. Vivian turned away from the sign to try to hide the red in her face. She was _some_ kind of spirit, she knew that, but a Boo of all things? She didn't know whether to be embarrassed or offended. Granted, she could actually do what the sign had suggested, making her feel even more silly about the whole thing.

With a running start, she cast herself in a ghastly veil, passing straight through the sandstone wall - slamming headfirst into a stalactite on the other side.

"Watch your head in there! Ha-ha-ha...."

And of course it heard that. Vivian brushed off her overalls. The area inside the wall was a cramped, a hole back to the surface across a small pit of jagged rock. Another sign stood, their presence almost mocking her. Better see what it was gonna say before she stumbled head first into those spikes.

It yelled out before she even raised a hand.

"Woah! If you could phase through that wall, you should totally try floating over those spikes."  
Vivian looked to the pit, and back to the sign. She really shouldn't be getting upset over this, she thought, but the sign's words still felt insincere. Was it judging her too? It would be rude to ask. Vivian simply darted off, and yes, floated over those spikes, though now she wondered how common ghosts actually were in the area. She hoped these wooden people didn't have a thing against ghosts.

Another bridge stretched out to a small gap in a wall. Looking closer, there was clearly a large pipe within. It must be the way to where the crew were stationed, Vivian thought. After all, these bridges had to be meant for the crew's use first, public use second. No sooner than a second after stepping on it, the wooden bridge collapsed, as if it were nothing but paper and glue. Vivian landed feet first on the sand below. A few planks fell straight on her head, once again sending her to the floor. Vivian, panicking, took out the parcel, and checked for damages. Thank the heavens, it was still in good shape. She couldn't say the same for her outfit. It was alright though, she reasoned she could get it cleaned once she bumbled her way to where those guys where stationed. Wherever that was. If they were OK with ghost-related peoples. _And_ if they were alright with her being half a day late...

Another pipe hung from beneath the one above; seemed as though it didn't actually lead anywhere in the first place. That made Vivian feel a little better about falling. Another bridge connected to a much more massive, curved wall. Walking around the pipe (of which some nasty looking plants had made a home in) another bridge served as a stepping stone, a long ladder suspended from the wall leading to it's summit. The ladder however, had sunken into the wall, it's rungs flush with the compacted sand. A security measure perhaps. Vivian felt the surrounding walls for any sort of hidden lever or switch. Nothing but the odd bug, of which she shook off into the surrounding waters without a second look. Phasing into the wall, it was hollow on the other side, with the hidden switch embedded into the rocky ceiling. That pipe was visible from within the wall. What an odd little room. Hitting the switch-block-thing caused the ladder to pull out from the wall, to little surprise, but to some confusion. Guess there were ghosts nearby after all.

It was a nice view from above. The water stretched out to the horizons. Was it an artificial lake, or was this merely another side of the same coast her crew arrived at? The second seemed more likely now. That took some of the mystique away. Still, Vivian couldn't help but gaze out into that faintly glistening water as she walked across the thin ground. She didn't even stop to notice that odd rustling behind that small wall.

* * *

"You see that, boss?"

The first goon leapt out from cover. A small, brown creature with a fanged pout. The goon's "boss", a turtle decked in greaser gear, showed a mischievous smile as he turned to his upcoming victim.

"Oh, I'm seeing it: one chump ready for a whoopin'!"

The first goon raised it's brow.

"Well, yeah, but I meant-"  
"Quiet."

The third goon revealed himself from an airborne block. The turtle goon grimaced. Of course that Ninji had to come out with the dramatic entrance. He hadn't even told the two of them where he was gonna be hiding, let alone tens of feet in the air! Though, he was right about getting a move on. The three goons began closing in on their target (they would've encircled her, but the area was a tad narrow...)

Vivian suddenly turned with a gasp.

Without thinking, she decked the fanged goon straight in the face. It flew backwards, dragging a rut in the sand. The other hoodlums took a step back.

The turtle began making odd motions with his hands, projecting some sort of magical field around her. He sweated, the act apparently draining him greatly. Vivian stood in confusion, as nothing was really happening.

The fanged goon dug itself out of the sand.

"Wow. You're really puttin' em through it, boss."  
The turtle almost broke his concentration. He knew his underling was hardy, but did he really have to rub this whole thing right in his face? It wasn't his fault he didn't put in his all in magic. He was always more of an intimidation guy, not a fighter.

"Could you just shut up for one second?! In fact, how's about you handle our next attack?"  
"Gladly."

Despite that being a threat, the turtle was glad he could stop his "attack" He wiped his eyes underneath his shades as the fanged goon stepped forward.  
He spat out a single seed into the sand. Almost immediately, a massive cannon burst from the ground, sand flying through the air. After a second or two, it shot out a spinning turtle shell straight at Vivian. Vivian simply stepped to the side, letting the shell bounce off the wall behind her.

The goons' reaction time wasn't as sharp.

They each got knocked into the ocean far below, with an impressive splash. The turtle's shell let him float back helplessly to the surface, his mates holding on in the rapid current. The Ninji goon turned to it's boss.

"I let myself fall with you, commander. It goes against my code to leave a team behind."  
The turtle tried to wipe the water off it's glasses.

"Wooow, thanks buddy. Now we _all_ get to float downstream as that bloke gets away!"  
"Ah come on boss, this ain't so bad. You know big boss' gonna wanna hear every second of this."  
Well, he was right about that. The turtle thought of the promotions he could barter once they drifted back to the old town. Maybe he could even get a spiked shell...

* * *

Back above, Vivian didn't know what to make of that whole ordeal. She guessed it was better she didn't get hurt, or worse - have that parcel stolen. And they didn't make any mention of ghosts, so the mugging was at least impartial! Vivian decided to take it as a positive experience.

The thin sort-of land bridge connected to a rather large isle up ahead. Multiple buildings were stationed along it's edge. The surrounding water poured from the isles' sides back into the surrounding ocean, a few fish struggling to hop up the waterfalls. This must be where that crew was stationed, Vivian hoped. A few steps forward, up a ladder, another board stood. It talked with an artificial giddiness, like an ad on a radio.

"The average amount of hits a person can take is 15, according to doctors.*"  
"(*Doctors may not be legally recognized.)

Vivian decided that the boards' business was none of her's. Whatever this one's job was, it was doing it well, and she shouldn't disturb it from doing so. She had places to be anyway. The first building was a rather tall, tower-like house. Maybe some blueprints got mixed up while making it, or it was some sort of designer thing. She'd seen weirder on those odd home life channels (people living _in_ murals...) With a deep breath, Vivian gave the door a polite knock.

No response.

That was reasonable. Another sign stood right by the door, but Vivian felt it didn't deserve interruption. By the house-tower stood a small gate above an equally small lake. It was pitifully short. It felt rude to just walk around it, but what choice did she have? If the area past was off limits, surely the people here would've built it better, she thought.

Past the bridge lay another sign, three floating switch-block things, and a smaller fort-house. To Vivian's surprise, the board didn't say anything at all. Looking closer, it actually had writing on it. Vivian waved in front of it's wood. Nothing. It was just a wooden sign, it seemed. That was a relief. The writing on the sign was faded, but clearly legible.

"To further strengthen security of the Bayou Overwatch, access to the old town has been forbidden. Please contact the Royal Administration for the _Tri-Block_ ™ passcode."

Old town? What'd it mean by "old town"...? Vivian had been told there was flat-out _nothing_ left of the kingdom that wasn't underground. Was she underground right now? That wouldn't make any sense, the moon was clear as day. At least, she figured it was the moon. Come to think of it, the moon had still been a crescent the night prior. 

It was all a bit much. Vivian decided that this where she needed to be, or at least, not that far from it. She'd worry about things once she got that parcel taken care of.

At the edge of the isle lay another building, much smaller in size. The door was unlocked, and a warm light shone from within. Stepping inside, the room was fairly quaint. It was divided in two by a thin wall, a pane of glass between the two. There was an eerie silence.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"  
A distant voice responded almost immediately.

"...Hold on! Just one second..."

A tile in the floor bolted open, the woman climbing out, brushing off her coat. She turned to face Vivian, wearing a smug grin on her face..

"Hi! I'm Daisy. So like, you're here about the dumb block stuff outside, right? Been meaning to take that junk apart. No wonder the last overseer got sacked, he-heh." 

Vivian clasped her hands in gratitude. It felt good to be talking to a normal person for once. 

"Oh! That'd be great! Thank you."

"Yeah, yeah, don't sweat it. What's a, uh, _person_ like you doin' round here anyways?"

"Well... I'm looking for someone by the name of 'Button'."

Daisy sneered.

" 'Button'? Who'd name their kid 'Button'?"

Vivian shuffled in place. She knew the parcel was assigned to Button, she'd kept pulling it out to make sure it was still there.

"...His parents did???"

"Whatever. I haven't seen this guy, let's just get you and those blocks situated, K?"

Daisy pointed to the door. There didn't seem to be any doors from her side of the room, but Vivian wasn't one to argue. At once, Daisy leaped from the windows of the building in a somersault, landing unsteadily. She held out her hands as if wanting applause. Vivian was more taken aback than anything. After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, Daisy put in the combination code into the odd block mechanism. The first block first, the middle second, the last, well, last. As with earlier, an unseen ladder revealed itself from a wall.

"There you go. Would you believe they advertise this thing as foolproof? Anyways - you have a good one, man."

* * *

The oddball in overalls seemed to squirm in place. Was it something she said? People always told Daisy she decidedly _didn't_ have a way with words. She hadn't said anything rude - well, anything really rude. Not rude enough to warrant her needing to apologize, anyway. Still, maybe she did come off like that somehow.

"You alright over there?"

The person looked to be collecting thoughts, and soon responded, to Daisy's relief.

"...Yeah. Just, um, remembered something."

And with that, Overalls headed up the ladder, and off towards the old town. Daisy hadn't bothered to ask why that "Button" guy would be in a place like that, and why should she have? Then again, it wasn't like there was much to do in the Bluffs. Right! She needed to water Cloudy. Daisy shuddered of the thought of her forgetting - he could end up nothing but a puffy wilted wreck in there!

Daisy unlocked the door to the tower house. Cloudy sat in a flowerpot on the dining table, looking confused as always. She sighed, and got out the flowerpot from the cabinet.

"It's alright Cloudy, it's just me."

The flower shivered, looking back and forth as if he could see something Daisy couldn't.

"W-where were you?! There's something, _something_ wrong upstairs and I d-don't know what it is-"

Daisy filled the watering can with water from the sink. Well, calling it a "sink" was a bit generous. It was really just some pumps, levers, and a filter for the saltwater outside. It was better than paying the RA, even if it still came out a bit salty. Cloudy's ramblings grew quiet as she poured the water on him. Daisy wasn't sure if he actually needed the drink, but his mental state definitely did; it was one of the few things that could calm him down whenever he went stir-crazy.

"There, there, I'll go see what it is. Probably just some bugs floppin' around in there."

"Bugs? Don't say bugs, you know I hate those... things..."

Cloudy just couldn't stay worked up with water in his pot. It was a nice reprieve for the two of them. Daisy climbed upstairs, and looked around for any signs of trouble, and as expected, there weren't any. Well, there was a funny feeling she got from the bedroom wall, but that was probably just dust coming through. The floor plan had an additional room behind the bedroom, for whatever purpose (construction did take a dive after those blueprints got mixed up...) 

Daisy head back downstairs. Cloudy was much more calm now.

"It's been pretty quiet these last few days, Daisy. You think something's gonna happen?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"Guy came through to the station. Had on this weird get-up... lemme tell you, pink and overalls do _not_ mix.

Daisy expected laughter, but Cloudy looked caught up in something. It took him a while to respond.

"When's the last time you saw anyone wearing _overalls_ of all things, Daisy? Especially with this place's history."

Daisy winced at that last line.

"I'll I'm saying is, that 'guy'... probably not from here. A-and I don't mean not from the bluffs-"

She buried her head in her arms. Of course, why hadn't she realized that? And now that guy was headed towards that ruined mess of crooks, all alone. Cloudy looked at her with a pleading frown. 

It was all a bit much. Daisy knew she had to do _something_ \- the last thing anyone needed was an excuse for the RA to get up their own hinds even more. She was technically still part of them, Daisy remembered. She wondered how she even got this "position" and not the guillotine. Better her out here than that old grouch.

"I'll be back, Cloudy. Don't let anyone in."

Daisy grabbed her old tennis racquet and headed for the door.

It was gonna be a long day.


End file.
